Rizikóhányados

Rizikóhányados, also known as the odds ratio, is a statistical measure used in observational studies, particularly in case-control studies, to estimate the strength of association between an exposure and an outcome. It represents the ratio of the odds of exposure in a group with the outcome to the odds of exposure in a group without the outcome. In simpler terms, it quantifies how much more or less likely individuals with a particular characteristic or exposure are to have a specific outcome compared to those without that characteristic or exposure.

A risk ratio (or relative risk) compares the probability of an outcome in an exposed group to the probability of the outcome in an unexposed group. The odds ratio is often used as an approximation of the risk ratio when the outcome is rare, or in case-control studies where incidence (and thus risk ratio) cannot be directly calculated.

An odds ratio of 1 indicates no association between the exposure and the outcome. An odds ratio greater than 1 suggests that the exposure is associated with an increased odds of the outcome, while an odds ratio less than 1 suggests that the exposure is associated with decreased odds of the outcome. Confidence intervals are typically calculated around the odds ratio to indicate the precision of the estimate. The interpretation of the odds ratio depends heavily on the study design and the specific context of the exposure and outcome being investigated.